One of the greatest car guy regrets is selling their first vehicle.
The usual story is boy meets car (or truck), boy beats up car (or truck), boy sells car (or truck).
Remorse typically sets in many years later when the vehicle in question becomes a larger-than-life legend in the former owner’s mind.
Jim Sutherland
They will forgive their lost rides’ many mechanical shortcomings and forget their former high school vehicles’ terminal rust issues while diving into the deep end of the sellers’ remorse pool. The most important part of the equation is simple: a high school vehicle is a huge part of a car guy’s history, even when parts fell off every second day on the way to math class.
There are a few car guys who were smart enough to keep their high school vehicles and never fire-sold them to a nearby car crusher or car curber.
A solid example is Paul Heroux, a car guy who was only 16 years old when he bought his 1977 Ford F-150 4×4 in the early 1990s and used it as a driver while Paul and a buddy tackled a restoration on the pickup. Their efforts would be the first in a series of three restorations on the truck, although it would be fair to say the ’77 Ford pickup underwent a complete transformation during the third restoration. The happy ending to the story is Paul never sold his high school truck.
The truck now has a flawless black paint job that even includes its bed, not an easy feat given the color choice and a tendency for truck beds to take a beating over the years in most situations.
Paul did not limit his restoration process to a perfect paint job and decided to improve his high school truck’s performance in a big way. He replaced the ’77 Ford’s original powertrain with a monstrous 545 cubic-inch big block stroker crate engine based upon the large Ford powerplants.
Paul told MyStarCollectorCar his giant engine cranks out 650 horsepower and, even better, an amazing 700 ft lbs of torque. The best way for Paul to harness all those ponies was through a Ford 4R70-W automatic overdrive transmission built to handle the rough stuff.
The truck has also undergone a major improvement because “everything underneath has been powder coated”, according to Paul, and now its frame is also a showpiece that matches the Ford’s stunning paint job.
The truck’s interior has also undergone a major improvement, starting with its aftermarket seat and console upgrade-complete with cup holders. The instrument cluster is also an upgrade and now sports digital gauges with very cool LED lighting around them.
Creature comforts were part of Paul’s game plan for his truck, so he included power steering, power brakes and even air conditioning on his project list.
The net result is a show truck that will still be a driver for Paul, although its rough and tumble days are long behind the beautiful 1977 Ford F-150 resto mod.
Paul describes his truck as his “Pavement Princess Forever”, so this car guy story will have a very happy ending for his pickup.
Jim Sutherland
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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